Iran’s Parliament Speaker Turns Against Ahmadinejad

When it comes to education and familiarity with Western philosophy, there are few right-wing politicians in Iran who can match Ali Ardeshir Larijani.

Holding a Ph.D. in Western philosophy from Tehran University, amongst other things he has written four books on Immanuel Kant and is one of the leading intellectuals in the field.

These days he is serving as the speaker of the Iranian parliament (Majlis). The members of parliament whom he oversees are in charge of reviewing and passing Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s policies. With eight months to go before the presidential elections, the Iranian president desperately needs his economic plans to be passed by the Majlis. Otherwise, he may fall from favor with the supreme leader.

To Ahmadinejad’s dismay, Larijani has openly declared that no economic plans or projects will be passed by the Majlis if they contribute to the country’s inflationary problems. The problem for Ahmadinejad is that the majority of his economic plans, which consist of injecting cash into the economy, add to the inflationary problems. In fact, populist spending policies without any consideration for inflationary impact are the linchpin of “Ahmadinejad-onomics.”

In the previous Majlis, Ahmadinejad got away with this policy because Hadad Adel, the previous speaker, was relatively close to him. On one scandalous occasion, Hadad Adel even allowed Ahmadinejad to break the law by allowing him extra time past his deadline to present justification for his economic plans. The extra time was given for no reason and without any promises from the president as to when he would present the mandatory report on his economic plans. This is one of the reasons why Hadad Adel lost his position. Majlis members were tired of his unwarranted leniency towards Ahmadinejad.

But with Larijani it is different. First and foremost, he does not have Hadad Adel’s connections. The previous Majlis speaker’s daughter is married to Khamenei’s son. Larijani, although well connected, does not have such a close family connection to the most powerful man in Iran.

Also, Larijani is less confident when it comes to domestic politics. He does not have a lot of experience in this sphere, which is crucial for aspiring presidents. This is why it is very important to him that the Majlis under his term does not add to the country’s economic problems. This is one reason why he has decided to stand up to Ahmadinejad’s damaging economic policies.

The other reason why Larijani has decided to take a stance against Ahmadinejad — and probably a bigger one — is revenge. Larijani has been waiting a long time to settle scores after the president, with his belligerent behavior, forced him to resign as Iran’s chief nuclear negotiator in October 2007. This came at a cost to Larijani: before this event, he was Iran’s top diplomat. In fact, he carried more weight and credibility than Iran’s foreign minister, Manuchehr Mottaki. In important foreign circles such as the European Union, there was more appreciation for Larijani than Ahmadinejad, who was seen as a loose cannon.

Therefore, Ahmadinejad has good reason to be concerned about the new internal challenge facing him.

Meanwhile, for Larijani and his presidential ambitions, making Ahmadinejad’s life difficult will help, but it will not automatically turn him into the most popular candidate for the presidency. In the last presidential elections, Larijani only received five percent of the vote. With candidates such as Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, who is the mayor of Tehran, and Hassan Rowhani, who was Larijani’s predecessor as Iran’s chief nuclear negotiator and is expected to run for the presidency, Larijani will have his work cut out.

Iran’s deteriorating economic situation will be one area where Larijani will have to prove his mettle. How does he plan to get Iran out of the current mess, which is about to become worse with the current global crisis?

As Larijani knows and has publicly stated, Iran is not immune to the downturn. One area which is already showing an impact is oil prices. Reaching $70 per barrel, this is $30 lower than the $100 per barrel mark which Iran has set as the minimum “suitable” price for its economy. So how does Larijani plan to make up for the expected shortfall?

Also, during the last elections Larijani promised expansion and jobs through increased foreign investment. This is going to be a more difficult goal to achieve for the next, due to Iran’s isolation. Therefore this time Larijani will have to come up with broad-ranging economic reform programs, otherwise the Iranian voter may cast him aside.

If he realizes that he has no chance to win, that will not stop the Iraqi-born Ali Ardeshir Larijani from making life difficult for Ahmadinejad. Iranian politics is full of stories about how one politician turned against another and how the victim settled scores with him later on. Except the supreme leader, no Iranian politician is immune to this.

The president of Iran won the last elections by cheating, which was allowed by Ayatollah Khamenei. This, plus Ahmadinejad’s belligerent economic and foreign policy, has made him many enemies. The current presidential campaign is when many of them will want to get back at the president. This is why the upcoming race is expected to be one of the most entertaining ever.

13 Comments, 13 Threads

1.
Marc Malone

Wonder if it would be suicide, politically or otherwise, to promise to quit spending money on acquiring nukes, and promise to build their own refineries instead? That’d go a long way to fixing their broken economy. Maybe they could quit financing the resistance in Iraq, and terrorists in general?

Hi Mark, this is where national interest is sacrificed over political interests of the elite. If they were interested in the best interest of the public, they would have done a lot of things differently, including the whole refinery issue.

Reaching $70 per barrel, this is $30 lower than the $100 per barrel mark which Iran has set as the minimum “suitable” price for its economy. So how does Larijani plan to make up for the expected shortfall?
Also, during the last elections Larijani promised expansion and jobs through increased foreign investment. This is going to be a more difficult goal to achieve for the next, due to Iran’s isolation.

McCain policy- Dig for more oil,
build Nuke plants,
and they will hang Amadinnernutjob from his own gallows,
or maybe throw him down his 12th imams well.
/I would like to have an electric car.
But
the only thing they have now is a $4,000 dollar car
with a $12,000 dollar- 600 mile drop cord.
(very little humor) ha.

An Ahmadinejad as a nations leader would embarrass any nation. His policies have isolated Iran, which if left to its own devices, would be a flower in the middle east. The truth is, the people of Iran are intelligent & industrious. If this clown had allowed that nation to function with the rest of the world, their situation today would be significantly brighter. The problem is, his 12th Imam thing. He wants to die. He truly believes this must happen for Islam to win the world. He truly expects to die, to further his idea. I doubt most Iranians buy into the die for the 12th Imam. They may love their religion, but they also love life & want to prosper.
Anyway, it would be a shame if opponents dropped out of the race for the presidency. Then again, perhaps they have or will drop out in order to keep living. I suspect this guy would kill off opposition with no remorse at all. His destroy Israel & America thing makes him unstable & that means political opponents face the possibility he will take out anyone who opposes his plans.
If Iran has been budgeting $100.00 a barrel oil as part of their economic structure, its patently obvious they declared financial war against the west when they did so. Few in America are aware some middle eastern nations have been budgeting $100.00 a barrel oil. Most Americans act as though those nations do no planning, which is obviously a foolish notion.
Iran with moderate leaders could regain its place among civilized nations quickly. The world wants to do business with them, but not if they are out of control religious zealots.
Many of Iran’s current problems stem from their extensive terrorist or terrorism ties which enormously drain their treasury. That will kill off an economy quickly. Just look at America trying to outspend them to fight against terrorism!
Just as many American politicians are hung up on their own personal political philosophies, so too are leaders in other nations. We in America need our politicians to think more about how their actions affect average Americans, than how such choices help or hurt their own political ambitions. (OK, so I can dream can’t I?)
I suspect our current moves toward socialism will cost us dearly in the long run as we extend ourselves so far beyond our possible means, that eventually we go broke trying to be all to all at our own expense, even though most either do not want our all or they want all & more to hurt us! Bush’s economy plans are stupid at best. Obama’s will only make the situation total chaos. Add to this the corrupt working with Obama (Fannie & Freddie former executives), & we have a real opportunity to totally bankrupt America in our lifetimes. Gosh, what a thought, huh?

This is nothing new; the ugly fall out between Larijani and Ahmadinejad has been going on since all the way back in February/March this year when there was the Guardian Council elections. And this is not the only rift within that regime.

You morons need to read a book entitled, “The Devil we know,Dealing with the new Iranian Superpower.” It’s written by Robert Baer. You have no idea the amount of power Teheran wields. Amidenijad is a figurehead. Ali Khamenei is the ultimate leader in Iran. Iran is no friend to Russia, and the pipeline we have built through Georgia is useless. Iraq already has a Shia government. Shia represents the ideals of the puritan work ethic: discipline, determination, education and hard work. The Persians could be our best friends if we’d let them. They are the largest country in the Middle-east by pop. and Land Area. Befriending them could stabilize Afghanistan and bring peace to the middle-east; Shia’s don’t like sunni radicals anymore than we do. This isn’t 1979. They want us as allies, all they are asking for is the respect due to a world power. I say we give it to them, in exchange for a powerful ally in the fight against Islamic Sunni extremists, like Al-Qaeda. They don’t like Al-Qaeda anymore than we do. Here’s some more info. Iran is our enemy, right. Well, allies are supposed to share commonalities and enemies oppose each other based on their differences. We support Democracies. Iranian voters can participate when they are 18. They can be male or female. This sounds similiar to the US. The Iranians consider themselves Persians and are made up of many different ethnic groups, kind of like a melting pot, like us. If you support democracy and anti-terrorism, then you should support Iran.

Look, in 1953 Eisenhower authorized the CIA to depose democratically elected Mossadegh with operation Ajax. We installed Mohammed Ravi Pahlavi who was a dictator. He established an government suppression agency known as:SAVAK; to crush political opposition. Khomenei opposed and publicly dennounced that administration. Pahlavi was brutal. He was overthrown. Well, then Komenei took control. The US installed Saddam Hussein as military dictator of Iraq. We gave him money, weapons, biological and chemical agents under CIA directives by George Bush. He attacked Iran. Iran survived. We have troops in Saudi Arabia because the dictator we installed invaded Kuwait. Al-Qaeda wants us out. George Bush gave weapons, training and money to Al-Qaeda to fight the Soviets. Do you think we are in a prison of our own design. The Persians want Al-qaeda erradicated, they are rational shia’s; they want equal share to Mecca. Look dummies, we’d better befriend them b4 the Chinese do.

Are you from Iran? A good friend of mine is. He is curious, intelligent, well-read and beligerent. I appreciate all those qualities. I want to know your opinion on the morality of fighting a technologically superior foe with low-tech methods. Iran uses carbombs, human sucide-bomber martyrs and snipers. We use helicopters, tanks, laser-guided bombs and high-powered .40 cal sniper rifles. Either way, soldiers and civilians die. But, the each side has tried to attach a morality to the two distinctly different methods of combat. The US has Labeled one as “world’s police” and the other as “terrorists.” What is a terrorist? The UN has no formal definition of terrorist. Why is this? Is the only difference: high-tech warrior vs. low-tech warrior? Iranians/Hezbollah (Iran is in charge of Hezbollah.)have labeled their forces as martyrs. Does a religious instrument include innocents as collateral damage? Should they use religion as a weapon against threats or as a tool of spiritual enlightment?